May Ng has been named chief investment officer at The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), effective April 17.
She replaces former CIO Brian O’Neil, who retired from the approximately $15 billion foundation at the end of 2022 after more than two decades of leadership.
“We are thrilled to welcome May Ng to the Foundation,” said Richard Besser, MD, president and CEO of the Princeton, N.J.-based foundation, which is focused on improving health and health equity in the U.S. “Her expertise in investment strategy and her commitment to our mission is clear.”
In her new position at RWJF, Ng will oversee all aspects of management of the endowment portfolio; execute overall investment policy, asset allocation, manager selection and portfolio risk; and work closely with the mission-driven Impact Investments team.
Ng brings 17 years of experience investing for endowments and foundations. She served most recently as vice president and chief investment officer at the Annie E. Casey Foundation in Washington, D.C. At the Annie E. Casey Foundation, she managed a $3.5 billion diversified investment portfolio, first joining in 2013 as director of public market investments. Prior to that she was a senior investment officer at the George Washington University investment office.
Xander Perry, director of private capital investments at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, is slated to succeed Ng as vice president and CIO. Perry joined the Casey Foundation in 2013 and leads the investment and management of $1.5 billion pool of diversified private capital investments.
During Ng’s tenure as CIO, the Casey Foundation’s endowment grew by nearly $1 billion while investing in assets aligned with the foundation’s mission. She also developed a framework for understanding and measuring diversity in endowment investments, according to the foundation. Perry commended Ng’s leadership style of partnership and shared accountability across the team, which he said he plans to continue.
Last month, RWJF also welcomed former New York State Common Retirement Fund CIO Vicki Fuller to its board of trustees. Fuller is currently the founder and CEO of VLF Development LLC, a strategic consultancy executing complex institutional advisory assignments. She joins the board effective April 18.
